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When did you realize you were really in labor?
After a long day of last minute errands (including finishing our taxes!) I was shopping in Sprouts at 40 weeks pregnant and out of the blue started having strong contractions. They started feeling pretty frequent, so I got a little worried when I realized they were coming every 3-5 minutes. My 2nd came very quickly, and I didn't want to have a baby at Sprouts or in the car! So I left the store without finishing my shopping. (Ironically some of the things I was shopping for were Evening primrose oil and more red raspberry leaf tea to help get labor going- after the contractions came I started thinking "Welp, I don't think I'll be needing these anymore!" ?) On the drive home called my midwife and also called my sister in law to watch our other two girls. When I walked in the door, I told my husband I was in labor and my contractions were every 3-5 minutes. We left our warm dinner that he was cooking on the stove, packed up our girls and headed to the birth center, which is about half an hour away. Thankfully our little guy was not born in the car, but did make his debut pretty quick and was born about an hour and a half after we arrived.
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
This really was my easiest birth in a lot of ways. The hardest part for me about going natural was waiting for labor to start and not worrying about our little guy coming after his due date. I had to remember to trust my body, that he would come when he was ready. He was born 4 days after his due date and was perfect!
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
We did the Bradley method classes for our first two, which was very helpful. For this birth, the few weeks prior I started mentally preparing by reviewing Bradley material, relaxation techniques, and watching natural birth videos. We didn't have time for another class since our hands were full with a 3 1/2 year old and 18 month old! It felt like the material was still fairly fresh in our minds from the last two. Given how fast my labor was (about 3 hours from time of contractions!), I was also thankful I had packed a hospital bag in advance that we could just grab and go!
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What surprised you about your birth?
I was surprised to find this birth was almost painless! I was praying a lot for an easy birth, especially when they told me he was posterior lying (sunny side up).
While in labor, I mentally focused on not "fighting" each contraction but instead accepting each one and working with it. I had a mental image of each contraction helping to move my little guy down the birth canal and closer to us being able to meet him! This helped manage the pain a lot, so much so that i would describe it more as discomfort- just my body working in the miracle of giving birth! Even during the pushing phase, when I gave in to what my body wanted to do and pushed through the pain, it mostly went away!
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Take a class! We loved the Bradley method, but really any good comprehensive class will help. A lot of what makes labor pain unmanageable is fear about not knowing what your body is doing!
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
Accepting each contraction/ working with them rather than fighting them. Mentally preparing myself- I used visualization exercises during each contraction such as imagining your body opening like a flower/ visualizing your body helping your little one moving down the birth canal. Moving around was helpful during early labor, the birth tub also was great relieving pressure/discomfort during late labor.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
I was in a birth tub, kneeling during the rest periods, on my hands and knees during the contractions.
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
I caught my own baby as he was born in the birth tub. It was a mixture of relief that labor was over and joy at finally meeting him.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
Take a class! We loved the Bradley method, but really any good comprehensive class will help. A lot of what makes labor pain unmanageable is fear about not knowing what your body is doing!
Trust yourself, your body, and your Creator who designed this process! You can do it!
